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Professor Otchere Addai-Mensah, the chief executive officer of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), expressed concern about the departure of more than 200 nurses and medical staff in 2023 from the hospital. According to Addai-Mensah, this is having an impact on the hospital’s operations.
During a visit to the hospital with Finance Minister Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam and his team, Professor Addai-Mensah emphasized the pressing need for the government to approve the replacement of the deceased employees in order to guarantee continuous service provision.
“In the past year, we have had over 200 nurses leave Komfo Anokye. Every day, I have had to approve three to five applications for either leave of absence or resignation, mostly nurses, radiographers, and medical laboratory scientists, and so we are praying that we should be allowed to replace these people who are leaving so that we can continue with the care that we are supposed to be giving to our patients.”
Apart from the workforce shortage, the hospital is also facing a serious equipment shortfall. In order to improve the hospital’s overall functionality, Professor Addai-Mensah urged the government to make a commitment to retooling various departments within the hospital.
“One of the major things we are facing is the retooling of the hospital. We are aware of the difficulties that the government has had concerning COVID-19 and others. Still, we believe that it is also possible for some help to be extended [to us] as far as retooling is concerned, especially given the fact that we are serving twelve regions.”
Following his visit to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), Dr. Muhammad Amin Adam, the newly appointed Finance Minister, gave an assurance to the media in Kumasi that work would soon resume.
His visit was intended to give him the chance to observe firsthand the difficulties the hospital faces and to evaluate the progress made at the location of the new Maternity Block construction.
The government was committed to finishing all projects initiated in the Ashanti region, including roads, markets, hospitals, and other facilities, the Finance Minister told the media.
He claimed that he has been given orders by the President to secure funding in order to finish the Sofoline Interchange, the second phase of the Kejetia project, the KATH Maternity Block, the Kumasi International Airport, and the roads in the Ashanti Region.
He revealed that the contractor working on the Afari Military Hospital had received $5 million and he was confident the project would soon be finished and put into use.
The Asantehene’s Heal KATH Project is renovating Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, according to Prof. Otchere Addai Mensah, the hospital’s chief executive.
He added that the completion of the 900-bed Maternity block would be a welcome gesture since they would have more space to move patients and complete the renovations. Currently, he noted that management has had to adopt a phased approach due to lack of space to renovate and still take care of patients.
“The difficult call i have had to make as CEO has been to ask patients to be sent to private facilities because we may lack the equipment to treat or may have been overburdened with other issues and i am hopeful that with this visit of the Finance Minister we will have government support to address the challenges we have here”, Prof Addai Mensah added.
Source: Ghanatodayonline.com
